Of all the skills in AP* Lit's CED, structure is one of my favorites! My students look puzzled when they're asked to talk about structure, often because they don't know all that it entails. Structure can refer to a poem's: form, rhyme, meter, line breaks, shifts, patterns, punctuation, and syntax. ...
Read More about AP Lit Skill Spotlight: Structure
AP Lit Skill Spotlight: Characterization in Poetry
One of the six featured skills in Poetry Unit 1 of the AP* Lit CED is CHR 1.A: Identify and describe what specific textual details reveal about a character, that character's perspective, and that character's motives. While characterization is an easier skill to tackle, it can sometimes give pause ...
Read More about AP Lit Skill Spotlight: Characterization in Poetry
AP Skill Spotlight: Contrasts
One of the six featured skills in Poetry Unit 1 of the AP* Lit CED is STR 3.D: the function of contrasts. This skill seems difficult and hard to approach, but it's actually one of the most widely applicable skills in the whole CED.
*AP® is a trademark registered by the College Board, which ...
Read More about AP Skill Spotlight: Contrasts
13 Scary Stories and Poems For High School ELA
I don't like scary movies, but I love scary stories. I grew up re-reading Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark. I love to listen to Lore in October while I walk through my dark neighborhood streets. And my favorite author is Stephen King, the master of horror. The way I look at it, movies make the ...
Read More about 13 Scary Stories and Poems For High School ELA
Discussing Complexity in AP Lit
One of the most common words in AP* Lit essay prompts is "complex," usually paired with the word "relationship." When we prepare for writing our first FRQs, I tell my students that the word "complex" is the most important word in the prompt. But when asked what complexity means, my students are ...
Read More about Discussing Complexity in AP Lit
6 Movies that Enhance How to Read Literature Like a Professor
In a previous blog post I shared six different television shows (including clips) that you can use to enhance your students' study of How to Read Literature Like a Professor. As promised, here are six additional films (and movie clips!) you can use to further enhance the study of HTRLLAP. Obviously ...
Read More about 6 Movies that Enhance How to Read Literature Like a Professor